He might drop off as he climbs the ladder but there aren’t many more rungs left to climb. Reminds me a little of Michael Cuddyer as a RH bat with a strong arm and otherwise below average defensive ability.
The Twins aren’t selling prospects this deadline but there are some “sell high” options. Brock Stewart is a good example. They could get a very good prospect for an arm they picked up off the scrap heap.
His next two seasons are probably $21M in arbitration so that would be three additional seasons at $34M each for Joe Ryan ages 32-34. I think he would take that but doubt the Twins would offer it.
“ It means trading Ryan (because he'll be very expensive over his final two years of arbitration eligibility”
He’s actually not. His arbitration values are likely $7M next season and $14M in 2027 which is an absolute bargain for an All-Star pitcher.
I think that's correct. I think it's also true about Christian Vazquez. Both will finish the season with the Twins because no contender was interested.
It makes you wonder about whether there are any more first basemen when a guy like Ryan Clifford is supposed to be the 8th best 1B prospect in the minor leagues. That said, he ranks higher than the subject of the article.